The Regional Wildlife Science Collaborative for Offshore Wind (RWSC) was cooperatively established and is led by four Sectors – federal agencies, states, eNGOs, and the offshore wind industry. The RWSC supports research and monitoring on wildlife and offshore wind by:
- Identifying priorities for scientific research and monitoring at the project, regional and ecosystem-wide scales
- Coordinating and aligning funding to meeting those priorities
- Ensuring appropriate data and standards are in place to support science priorities
Updates
Join the RWSC Mailing List to receive updates
- April 5, 2022: RWSE is now the Regional Wildlife Science Collaborative for Offshore Wind
- January 7, 2022: Collaborative funding for continued visual Aerial Megafauna Surveys in southern New England Wind Energy Areas
Integrated Science Plan for Offshore Wind and Wildlife – under development by the RWSC Subcommittees:
View the draft Ongoing & Pending Offshore Wind & Wildlife Research Database (and email us to add research projects)
- Marine Mammals – access materials here
- Sea Turtles – access materials here
- Birds and Bats – access materials here
- Habitat and Ecosystem – REGISTER for Kickoff Meeting, 5/24 from 1-2pm ET
- Protected Fish Species – TBD
- Cross-taxa / cross-cutting – TBD
2022 Steering Committee and Sector Caucuses
The Steering Committee contains equal representation of the four Sectors. Representatives are elected by the members of each Sector Caucus.
- State Caucus
- Massachusetts Clean Energy Center
- New York State Energy Research and Development Authority
- Maryland Department of Natural Resources / Maryland Energy Administration
- Federal Caucus
- BOEM
- NOAA
- US FWS
- Offshore Wind Industry Caucus
- Orsted North America
- Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind
- Equinor / Shell (alternate)
- eNGO Caucus
- Natural Resources Defense Council
- National Audubon Society
- The Nature Conservancy
View the full Sector Caucus Membership list (as of March 2022).
Events
Subscribe to the RWSC public calendar
Key Documents
- RWSC Governance Structure: Articulates a governance structure for the RWSC as a collaborative entity among four Sectors – federal agencies, state agencies, environmental non-governmental organizations, and offshore wind companies.
- Annual Work Plan for FY2022: Outlines the broad bins of responsibilities of NROC, MARCO, and CSSF staff in launching and implementing the RWSC.
Background
In July 2021, NROC, MARCO, and CSSF announced that they were selected to host the RWSC (then called Regional Wildlife Science Entity or RWSE). Read the July 2021 announcement from NROC, MARCO, and CSSF.